Monthly Archives: March 2013
Virginia Marine Police issue 500 citations for oyster poaching
Newport News, Va. – An ongoing Virginia Marine Police operation to protect a resurgent oyster population has resulted in 500 citations issued to commercial watermen over the past two years for violating oyster catch restrictions. “Oyster poaching now borders on an epidemic,” said Marine Resources Commissioner Jack Travelstead. Read more
The Pacific Fishery Management Council wants regulation of forage fish
VANCOUVER, Wash. — A draft of an ecological plan that applies to West Coast fisheries has emphasized the need for management of so-called forage fish to improve salmon runs. Advocates have welcomed the plan and its broad appr
oach to Northwest ecosystems. The Pew Charitable Trusts’ environmental arm has recently pushed to raise awareness of forage fish and their importance to the marine food web. Read more
Canadians at risk, Coast Guard closures could overload Halifax centre
A retired Coast Guard captain says the closure of two search and rescue centres is putting Canadians in danger and won’t save the federal government much money. Read more
Corporations may rule the sea – New Hampshire small boat operators say new regulations could be their demise
Seacoast fishermen are seeing the writing on the wall when it comes to the future of their industry. Fishermen say the small boat fleet is collapsing under the New England Fishery Management Council’s sector management plan of regulating fisheries. Read more
Clean Power Collateral Damage: Of Birds, Tortoises And The Transition From Fossil Fuels
Whether the relevant federal agencies erred in their analysis remains, obviously, a matter for the courts, but it’s worth pointing out that Cape Wind is also supported by virtually all of the major environmental organizations in the United States, including Greenpeace, the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council. Presumably none of these groups would argue that Cape Wind — or any major infrastructure project, for that matter — is without impacts on local wildlife and the nearby environment. But in the case of the Nantucket wind farm, these groups seem to suggest, the trade-offs are reasonable. Read more
Coast Guard medevacs ill fisherman near Cold Bay, Alaska
The 47-year-old fisherman, who was reportedly suffering abdominal distress, was safely hoisted from the Sea Freeze Alaska and flown to Cold Bay where he was safely transferred to commercial medical services for further care. Read more
Small time fishermen fight for their survival
BREWSTER —Just as big eat the little fish in the sea, Cape Cod’s fishing fleet is being swallowed by larger pockets that are buying the available quota of cod and other catch. Can the small family-owned boats survive or will the remaining fishermen wind up as sharecroppers for someone else’s fleet? “It would be nice to think if we wanted to go fishing we didn’t have to work for anybody else but with consolidation it doesn’t seem to be going that way,” said Jason Amaru, who fishes ground fish put of Chatham. Read moreJohn Furlong | Finding connections at the Boston Seafood Show
I was surprised by the way I felt when I arrived here in Boston. Like a lot of other Newfoundlanders, I knew a little about the connection between Newfoundland and Boston and that many of us had relatives who went to “the Boston States” for work in the fishery and other industries. So perhaps it is natural that I feel a kinship to this city that goes well beyond my longstanding loyalty to the Boston Bruins. The people of Boston have roots that go back to the same reasons that planted many a Furlong and Malone and Fitzgerald in Newfoundland. Read more
Lobster tops list as Canada’s most valuable seafood export – New Brunswick was Canada’s largest exporter
The federal Fisheries Department says $4.1 billion worth of Canadian seafood landed on tables in more than 100 countries last year, with lobster remaining the most valuable export. Read more
Magnuson fishing mandates up for review – fourth 10-year revision and re-authorization
The process will highlight different perspectives on the need for writing flexibility into the law — which was the subject of two national rallies at the Capitol, one in 2010 and another in 2012 — from the team of Congressman John Tierney and former Congressman Barney Frank, advocates of the need for flexibility on the one hand, to Congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Ed Markey on the other, who does not share their view of the law as an inflexible impediment to a revitalized industry. Read more
NOAA Raises Northeast Monkfish Limits For Many, Not All
Thanks to a request by the New England Fishery Management Council, NOAA announced a proposal to relax regulations for monkfish in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank. The move could help fill the void left by sever cuts in cod, groundfish, and just about every other fish in New England waters. Read more
Fishermen weigh options, risks as dire limits near – Faces of fishing’s ‘disaster’
The desperation shows on their faces and in the risks they’re taking to keep their mom-and-pop businesses on a lifeline. If pulse fishing hadn’t occurred, our sector would have been able to catch our quota,” said Burgess. “It’s a tremendous oversight to let the big boats work in shore,” said Ed Smith, captain of the 40 foot Claudia Marie. “And it wasn’t as if (NOAA) weren’t told” what was going on. Read more
American Samoa hosts the Western Pacific Fishery Management Council March 11-14, 2013
The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council will convene its 156th meeting next week at the Governor H. Rex Lee Auditorium. Sam Rauch, NOAA Acting Assistant Administrator for Fisheries, will be attending the meeting. The Scientific Statistical Committee, which advises the Council, says the “determination tool” used to indicate listing or not is flawed and recommends that the council suggests that the National Marine Fishery Services, which is reviewing the listing proposal, consider an alternative determination tool. Read more 156th Council Meeting March 11-14, 2013 Pago Pago, American Samoa. WPFMC info here
NOAA report finds commercial and recreational saltwater fishing generated $199 billion in 2011
Economic information related to commercial and recreational fishing activities, and fishing-related industries in the United States are reported in the annual Fisheries Economics of the U.S. statistical series. These reports cover a ten year time period and include descriptive statistics on commercial fisheries landings, revenue, and price trends; recreational fishing effort, participation rates, and expenditure information; and employer and non-employer establishment, payroll, and annual receipt information for fishing-related industries. The economic impact of commercial and recreational fishing activities in the U.S. is also reported in terms of employment, sales, and value-added impacts. The report
The description of the EDF (Experimental Drug Foundation) prescription for Gulf of Alaska trawl fisheries permit holder
satire Catch Shares – the Experimental Drug Foundation (EDF) Prescription that you may be looking for!
Are you a Gulf of Alaska trawl fisheries permit holder who has borrowed to the hilt under government subsidized loan programs, and sick of sharing it with the crewmembers and captains who create the real capital surplus of the industry? Are you ready for ownership in an oligopolistic economic model of socialism? Read more!
Canada Announces Strong Fish and Seafood Exports Data in 2012
“Fish and seafood is one of the largest single food commodities exported by Canada. The strong exports in 2012 demonstrate the trust consumers place in our fish and seafood products worldwide,” said Minister Ashfield. “The sector currently employs approximately 80,000 Canadians who are involved in commercial fishing, aquaculture and processing activities. We are proud of this industry and will continue to support it.” Read more
Maine Gov. Paul LePage announced Sunday from the International Boston Seafood Show, the Maine lobster fishery is MSC Certified
The London-based Marine Stewardship Council said the fishery meets its strict standards for responsible fishing practices. The announcement was made at the annual International Boston Seafood Show, with LePage surrounded by lobster fishermen, MSC representatives and others. Read more
Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance Weekly Update MARCH 10, 2013
“The Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance
is dedicated to its mission of continuing to help create sustainable fisheries without putting licensed fishermen out of business.”
Wind Industry Should be Prosecuted for Fraud
The claim that wind farms are environmentally friendly is a joke, since millions of endangered bird species have been killed by the turbines themselves. Marine life, exposed to the constant low-pitched noise generated by coastal turbines, suffer huge losses by the beachings of whales and dolphins. Human health has also come into question, from those who live close to turbines and experience constant exposure to this noise. Read more
Clearwater serves up new creamy scallop dish at the Boston Seafood Show
After selling millions of bacon-wrapped scallops in Canada last year, Clearwater Seafoods Inc. is launching a new value-added product aimed at both the domestic and U.S. markets that it’s hoping will prove just as popular with re
staurateurs as ordinary people rushing to get dinner on the table. Clearwater is the largest holder of shellfish licences and quotas in Canada. Read more
Fisherman’s service symbolic – Tyson Townsend, 25, of Woods Harbour will be rememered today at 2 pm
Twenty-five years after five fishermen were lost at sea off Nova Scotia’s coast, one of the victims in the province’s most recent maritime disaster will be remembered at a service Sunday.
A memorial service for Tyson Townsend, 25, of Woods Harbour, is to be held at the Barrington arena. It begins at 2 p.m. Read more
Out and About in Beantown? Check out the International Boston Seafood Show/Seafood Processing America
Exhibiting companies from 46 countries have descended on the Hub for the three-day International Boston Seafood Show/Seafood Processing America that starts today. Read more
If you go, be sure to stop into the Seafreeze Ltd booth # 2407, and say hello to Ken Loud and the other fine people from Seafreeze Ltd., and tell them you saw it mentioned here at Fisherynation.com.
Fishermen watching Del. battle for exclusive recreational fishing zones in federal waters
Delaware is asking the federal government to turn the artificial reefs into “Special Management Zones,” or SMZs, where only hook-and-line or spear fishing is allowed. Commercial fishermen who use pots to trap black sea bass, lobster, tautog and other delicacies of the deep would be banned. New Jersey anglers are watching the Delaware case closely. Read more
Changing ecosystem concerns fishermen – the Gulf of Maine is getting warmer and more acidic
Scientists aren’t sure yet how the trend, which is believed to be tied to human-induced climate change, will affect ocean life in the gulf. But there is rising concern — especially among fishermen — that changes in the ocean ecosystem could severely damage some of the fisheries that are the backbone of the region’s seafood industry. Read more
Drakes Bay Oyster Company’s farm flap reverberates far beyond Drake’s Bay
Drakes Bay Oyster Company’s legal bid to continue operating in federally protected waters has broader implications than simply the fate of the Marin County family-owed business that sells $1.5 million worth of shellfish a year. Read more
Bill would add $1M to Maine’s lobster marketing efforts – Nelson King of Cutler said, “It amounts to extortion,”
Nelson King of Cutler said he didn’t like the fact that LD 486 would make lobstermen come up with 75 percent of the funds for the marketing program. He accused dealers of conspiring to pay lobstermen low prices and said that it would not be fair to have fishermen support a program that mainly helps dealers, processors and restaurants. Read more
Rival measures would restore alewives into the St. Croix
The future of spawning alewife runs in the St. Croix River will likely be decided by state lawmakers next month as they evaluate rival bills aimed at allowing the fish back into the watershed. Read more
2 commercial fishermen accused of robbing stone-crab traps
State wildlife officers nabbed two suspected stone-crab trap robbers Friday afternoon near Ballast Key with the help of some eyes in the sky. Both men are commercial fishermen, according to jail records. Read more
‘Significant’ fish kill not result of disease: fish vet
An infectious fish disease is not to blame for a “significant” fish kill last month at a salmon farm on Nova Scotia’s Eastern Shore, according to the province’s chief fish veterinarian. Read more
Cooke’s first salmon harvest – to be displayed at the Boston Seafood Show
Hundreds of thousands of Atlantic salmon are being sucked from their pens in the first ever harvest of fish from a Cooke Aquaculture site in St. Marys Bay. He then opened a box to reveal a silver-sided salmon on ice, the first fish harvested and now ready to be displayed this weekend at the Boston Seafood Show. Read more
